


James and the Giant Storm

by WeWitchesOne



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Canon Compliant, Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Domestic Fluff, F/M, Family Feels, Fluff, Post-Canon, cute kid
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-11
Updated: 2018-08-11
Packaged: 2019-06-25 21:52:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 740
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15649644
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WeWitchesOne/pseuds/WeWitchesOne
Summary: Thunder and lightning, very very frightening! James Sirius Potter would definitely agree as he sprints into his parents' room for comfort. A missing moment post-canon but pre-epilogue





	James and the Giant Storm

It had been a quiet evening in the Potter-Weasley household. A dark evening, scored by the constant patter of heavy rain on the roof and flung against the curtained windows, but a peaceful, homely evening nevertheless. And then, sometime after midnight, long after the domestic business of getting everyone ready for bed and snugly tucked in, there was a bright flash of light rapidly followed by the inevitable… _Boom!_

“Mummy! Daddy!” Little feet came scurrying into Harry and Ginny’s room.

“James? What is it?” said Harry. He sat up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. Ginny was still asleep next to him, hair and limbs sprawled across the bed. He nudged her gently to wake her up.

“Daddy, I’m _scared_.” The three-year-old launched himself into the air, onto his parents’ bed, and landed squarely on Harry’s stomach. Ignoring his dad’s grunt of pain, James continued across the bed and clambered on top of Ginny, who blanched.

“Harry, get your son off his future brother before I puke on him!” Urgency made her voice higher than normal. Harry quickly scooped their son up and cradled him in the circumference of his arms as Ginny scrambled for the bathroom.

Harry chucked James under the chin. He spoke loudly to cover the sound of Ginny retching. “Shhh, James, it’s only a stor—” _Booom!_

James screeched. Ginny swore from the bathroom. “Er, honey?” Harry asked. “You all right in there?”

“I’m fine. The baby just kicked at the same time the thunder went. It startled me.” Ginny emerged from the bathroom. She ran her fingers through the tangles of her hair, trying to put it back into order, but paused. “Where’s James?”

Harry actually had to look around for a moment before realizing that James had burrowed right out of his arms. The little boy had wedged himself between Harry and the headboard, half upside down and one little stocking-foot waving near Harry’s left ear. His father gently pulled him out by the ankles and placed him in the middle of the bed.

Ginny climbed back under the covers and ran a soothing hand through James’ hair. As with Harry’s mop, her soft touch did nothing to tame the tousled mess. “Shh, shh,” she whispered. “It will be all right.”

The storm carried on, getting progressively worse. James shook with fright each time the thunder cracked. Harry tried to turn the lightning and thunder into a game. “James, listen, the thunder isn’t even that close. You see the lightning and count till the thunder goes. Look, there’s the lightning.” _Booooom!_

“Harry, I don’t think that helped.” James was doing his best to crawl under Ginny. “Try something else.”

“Like what?

“I dunno, what do you do when you’re scared?” Ginny snatched up her son and held him tightly. She nuzzled his ear affectionately and turned him toward his father. “Watch Daddy. He won’t let you be scared anymore.”

Harry looked at his son’s expectant, fearful face. No pressure. He wracked his brain, trying to come up with something to cheer James up. _What do I do when I’m scared?_ The first idea that came to him was useless. Fighting back against dark magic was hardly useful when dark magic and evil wizards weren’t the problem. _And it’s not like James needs to be_ more _scared. But how do I fight back against something intangible?_

Then it hit him. It was a brilliant idea, and even better, it just might work. Harry picked up his wand from the bedside table.

 _Expecto patronum!_ Silently cast, a glowing silver stag leapt from the tip of his wand. It cantered around the room before coming to a halt next to Harry’s side of the bed. Harry stretched out his hand and caressed the stag’s nose. James had quieted, wide-eyed with wonder. Ginny scooped him up and scooted them both nearly into Harry’s lap.

James reached out a small hand and patted the stag’s nose as well. The Patronus half-closed its eyes and tilted its jaw up.

“James,” said Harry. “This is Prongs.” And the storm was quite forgotten.

Much later, Ginny asked what Harry had thought of when he conjured the Patronus. “How happy I am that you, James, this baby and I are a family,” he replied. He was rewarded with a messy armful of Ginny.

“You sap,” she muttered, giving his arm a playful slap and thoroughly ignoring her own teary grin. She kissed him.

**Author's Note:**

> Revised from an old fic orginally posted on FF.net


End file.
